The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may or may not constitute prior art.
Accumulators are relatively common components in hydraulic circuits and systems. As their name suggests, they are essentially storage devices that accumulate pressurized hydraulic fluid when a supply or flow of hydraulic fluid exceeds the consumption or demand of a system or device. Conversely, when the consumption or demand exceeds supply or flow, the previously stored fluid is exhausted from the accumulator to maintain the desired or necessary pressure or flow.
A typical vehicle powertrain includes an engine and a transmission. In certain powertrains, the engine is selectively turned on and off. That is, as the vehicle comes to a stop, the engine is automatically stopped under a predetermined stop condition, and then, under a predetermined restart condition, the engine is restarted. These powertrains may further include a hydraulic control system with an accumulator that is arranged to discharge a fluid to a torque transmitting device, such as, for example, a clutch when the engine is restarted, to accumulate the fluid when the engine is on, and to retain the fluid when the engine is turned off.